Joanna James
Ever seen black sand on the beach? This is not a very well-known about phenomenon in the world, but it does exist. Got your interest piqued? Read on to find out where some of these beaches lie.
Icebergs stranded on the Jökulsárlón black sand beach , David Phan via Flickr , (CC BY 2.0)
Iceland's black sand beach in Jökulsárlón has been quite a hit with Hollywood over the years, having been used to film scenes for films such as Lara Croft: Tomb raider and the James Bond movie franchise's Die Another Day installment.
Prominently featuring icebergs of all shapes and sizes, this beach provides a chilly contrast to the usual, tropically-weathered beaches of the world that one tends to come across on blogs such as Sandy Beach Trips and other travel blogs.
っ, Morning of Lovina Beach 200507-6, CC BY-SA 3.0
Along the shores of Lovina Beach in Indonesia's island of Bali, tourists will see sands of black blanket the shore. These sands owe their colour to Mt. Agung's lava.
This volcanic mountain which is located close by to the beach gives Lovina Beach it's colour due to the cooled down form of the lava that it emits.
This mountain's presence has such a dominating impact on the region that it affects not only the colour of the sand on the beach but also affects the area's climate significantly.
Bali is one of Indonesia's best beach destinations, and this beach is popular with tourists for activities like snorkelling and dolphin spotting excursions. 🏔
By The original uploader was JShook at English Wikipedia (Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons.) [CC BY 2.5 , GFDL or CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
New Zealand's Muriwai Beach is another of the world's surprisingly significant number of black sand beaches.
Ornithologists will be glad to know that Muriwai Beach is home to a huge colony of gannet birds. 🕊🌊
If you are interested in making a trip here, some of the attractions that you will find include horse riding, hang gliding and kiteboarding which take place along this forty mile stretch of beach.
Photo via Pixabay , CC0 Public Domain
The Playa Jardin beach in Puerto de la Cruz on the Canary Islands, unlike the other beaches on this list, is not naturally occurring, but is, in fact man-made.
The man behind it is the country's own home-grown artist, César Manrique who envisioned the design.
When you visit the beach, you will amazingly also spot waterfalls and carefully manicured gardens alongside the black sand of the beach.
By Brocken Inaglory (Own work) CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL , via Wikimedia Commons
Punalu'u Beach, situated in the iconic tourist destination of Hawaii, which lies off of North America's southwest coast, is filled with black sand.
This phenomenon is, like in Bali, also thanks to the volcanic eruptions that take place here.
The volcanic mountain, Mauna Loa remains precariously active to this day, and tourists are so besotted with the black sands that it produces, that they have actually been asked to refrain from collecting it to take home as a keepsake of their holiday in Hawaii. 🌋
The picture perfect islands of Hawaii have long been popular with globetrotters from all parts of the world as a famed, seaside holidaying paradise full of shimmering waters and vibrant local customs.
A true believer that the pen is a mighty weapon, ventures into reaching the minds of every reader with the earnest hope of leaving an indelible stream of thought.
A travel writer who has a passion for fashion and a deep interest in admiring new and exotic attractions around the world.
